Mudblood: Pride of Slytherin
by hmmga
Summary: Slytherin house has changed. Hogwarts hasn't. Alexander Millington-Lee has had a privileged upbringing,. Sent away at seven, his arrival at Hogwarts shakes the school to its core. Because Alex isn't just another muggleborn. Only he has the power to force the school to overcome old prejudices, but he won't have to do it alone. He has his new friend Lily to help him...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

His sister was the first one to start crying.

Up until now, she hadn't really known what was going on. She was only five after all, reasoned Alex. Now that she realised her brother wouldn't be going home with them… she didn't want to let go. She clung to his new grey blazer with sticky fingers, big blue eyes filled with tears.

"But you gotta come home!" she sobs. "Who gonna help me dress Dolly?"

He blushes, grateful that nobody was listening to their conversation. His father was sorting out his trunk, and his mother was gossiping with one of the other parents.

"I'm a big boy now, Lucy," he says confidently, pulling himself up to his full height. "And I need to grow up."

She clung to him desperately, and their father chuckled when he returned, their mother running forward to prize Lucy off him.

"Oh, my darling," she sighed, kissing his forehead. "I'm going to miss you."

"I'll miss you too, mother."

"No you won't," she laughed. "You're going to be far too busy having a simply splendid time."

She has tears in her eyes too now, and she ruffles his hair affectionately, giving him a final kiss.

"Have a marvellous term, darling, I'll see you at Christmas."

She leaves to return to the car, carrying a sobbing Lucy with her. Alex's father puts a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Now, I need you to be strong," he said. "It's a fine place this, I had a wonderful time. I know you will make me proud."

"Of course, Father."

"Anything you need, anything you've forgotten, you only have to write. Behave yourself, listen to the teachers, make lots of new friends…"

"Yes father."

"You're a good boy, Alexander. Have a good term."

His father gripped his shoulder a moment before letting go and turning away. Alex watched him go, getting into the car with his mother and sister and driving away. He did not cry.

He turned back to the large grey building, trudging up the steps into the formidable grey building of his new school. His lip wobbled but he still did not cry. He refused to cry.

He was seven now. He had to make his father proud.

XXX

It was strange really, that every time he went away to school, he would always look back on that one first time.

Of course, now it was different. This year he was stood on a platform that shouldn't exist, dressed in flowing black robes, with a wand in his pocket and an owl in a cage. His parents were staring around in amazement, his trunk already stowed in an empty compartment. He was going to Hogwarts, and he was still struggling to believe it.

_The letter had arrived on the Monday before his eleventh birthday. He remembered being confused, because he never normally got any post until his mother's letter on Wednesdays, and it wasn't written in his father's handwriting._

_He had thrown the letter onto his bed, and hurried to his first lesson, the strange letter being pushed out of his mind. They were in the middle of History when the call came, one of the matrons at the door to the classroom._

"_Millington?" she called. "There's a man here to see you."_

_He looked to his teacher, and he nodded._

"_Dismissed."_

_He rose and followed the matron through the hallways, to the little sitting room usually occupied by the headmaster. He knocked on the door._

"_Come in!"_

_He entered nervously, and the headmaster stood up to greet him._

"_Ah, Millington, how are you?"_

"_Good morning, sir."_

"_Now, this is professor Longbottom. He's been sent to talk to you about his school… I'll let you explain."_

_He backed out of the room, leaving Alex and the strange man alone._

"_You must be Alex."_

"_Millington," corrected Alex, taking the Professor's outstretched hand. "Nice to meet you, sir. Are you from Eton?"_

"_I… what?"_

"_Eton. I received your acceptance letter, and I am most grateful for the opportunity…"_

"_You read the letter from Hogwarts?"_

_Now it was Alex's turn to be confused._

"_From what? A letter, oh, the letter! No, I'm afraid I left it in the dormitory when it was brought up…"_

"_Oh, in that case… hang on, dormitory? This is a boarding school?"_

"_Of course… what exactly did you want to talk about, sir?"_

_Alex sat quietly through Professor Longbottoms explanation of magic, Hogwarts, and the wizarding world. At the end, he nodded._

"_Do you see?"_

"_Yes, thank you sir. It all makes a lot of sense now, actually."_

_They sat in an awkward silence for a few moments, the Professor looking around curiously._

"_So this is a muggle boarding school. I've never seen one before."_

"_Muggle?"_

"_Non-magic. Is this your first year here?"_

"_My third, actually?"_

_Professor Longbottom gaped at him. "How old were you when you first came here?"_

"_Seven."_

"_You went to boarding school at _seven_ years old?" he gasped. "But… why?"_

"_Well I can't be tied to my mother's apron strings all my life."_

"_But _seven_!"_

"_You said this Hogwarts place was a boarding school. Surely lots of students have gone to Prep schools before it."_

"_None that I've met! Although, I think there was one boy in my year, he was down to go to Eton too…"_

"_They'll be quite disappointed, you know. They were very eager to have me. They wanted to offer me a full scholarship, but father earns more than enough money, and he told them to give the scholarship to some poor fellow who needs it… I don't know how I'm going to explain this to my parents."_

"_I will do that," said the Professor. "Normally we try to talk to the whole family together, but this is a special case… I will talk to them later today, but we'll still need to arrange a trip to buy your school supplies."_

"_There is an exeat weekend in two weeks. If that's not a good time then it will have to wait until the holidays."_

"_The summer holidays will probably be the best time," sighed the Professor. "Do you have any other questions?"_

Eleven o'clock was approaching. Alec solemnly kissed his mother, hugged his sister, and shook his father's hand before boarding the train.

The guard blew his whistle.

It was time to go to Hogwarts.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The train pulled slowly out of the station, and Alex settled down to read a book his father had bought him about wizarding law. The noise of the clamouring parents faded away, until the only sounds were the clattering of the train over the tracks, and the chattering of students in the compartments on either side.

There was a knock on the door, and his heart sank as a familiar, pudgy face appeared.

"Hiya Alex!"

He nodded curtly.

"Good morning, Smith."

_His heart sank, and he resisted the urge to curl up his nose as Professor Longbottom introduced him to Adam Smith. Instead, he nodded politely, offering the boy his hand._

"_Nice to meet you. Are you muggleborn too?"_

"_Yep," he grinned. "Didn't know anything about magic until the letter came! Do people call you Alex?"_

"_No, people call me Millington."_

"_Oh, well, nice to meet you Alex."_

"Don't_ call me that."_

"_Oh, so people _really_ call you Millington? I thought you were just joking."_

"_Why would I be joking? You asked me a question, I answered it."_

"_Right… where are you from?"_

"_Berkshire, but I went to school at Park House, which is in Hertfordshire. You?"_

"_London. My school was called 'Cromwell House', and…"_

"_Oh yes, I played rugger against them once. Gave them a damn good thrashing."_

"_Um… okay…"_

"_Do you play rugger, or are you a cricket boy?"_

"_I don't really like sport…"_

_The conversation tailed off (much to Alex's relief) when their parents called them over to begin their shopping. The Professor showed them how to get past the wall into Diagon alley, and both boys stared around, amazed by the magical street. Alex wished he had another pair of eyes, and at least three more ears; there was so much to take in. Around him the crowds hurried back and forth, and he caught snatches of conversation._

"_I'm telling you, the prophet's got better things to write about than…"_

"_Five sickles a yard…"_

"_Give it back, Al, or I'm gonna tell dad…"_

"_I wouldn't have thought she was the type…"_

"_See, even _Scorpius_ says you should hand it over…"_

_Eventually they reached Gringotts, and listened as Professor Longbottom attempted to explain the wizarding currency._

"So, um, can I sit here then?"

"Must you?" he asked abruptly. He had already endured a day of Smith's irritating chatter. "I'm trying to read."

Smith's face fell.

"Oh," he muttered. "Alright."

Alex almost felt sorry for him as he shuffled out, leaving a greasy hand-print on the glass pane of the door.

XXX

A few hours later, there was a rap on the door, and Alex looked up to see two girls studying him intently. He froze. He'd never had much contact with girls.

"Are you a first year?" asked the one with short brown hair. He nodded mutely. "Is it alright if we sit here?"

"Be my guest," he said.

"We don't mean to intrude," said the one with the long red hair. "But my brother was being a prat, and his friends were just as bad."

She stopped in front of him, doing a small curtsey. Alex stood up and bowed, the way he had learned in the etiquette book his father had bought for him. The red-headed girl giggled, and turned to her friend.

"See, Alice? I told you manners don't cost a knut."

The brown-haired girl rolled her eyes.

"I still think it's daft."

Alex looked between them, nonplussed.

"I'm Alexander Millington-Lee. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Lily Potter," said the red-head. "And this is my friend, Alice Longbottom."

"_Longbottom?_"

"Don't you dare laugh," said the girl.

"No, it's just, are you related to Professor Longbottom, the herbology teacher?"

"He's my father," she told him. "You know him?"

"He came to talk to me, after I received my letter. And he took me to Diagon Alley."

"You're a muggleborn?" asked Lily in surprise. "I never would've guessed."

He shrugged, sitting back down.

"I'm a fast learner."

Lily smiled, and sat opposite him, Alice settling by her side.

"So," he began nervously. "You have a brother here already?"

"Two of them," admitted Lily. "Albus is quite nice, but James is a real pain… what about you?"

"I have a sister," he told her. "But she's younger than me, but I am guessing she has magic too, if her school reports are anything to go by."

"Why her school reports?" asked Alice.

"Strange happenings, mysterious goings on… you know the sort of thing. Apparently there was one girl who was simply beastly to her, and she managed to tear up the other girl's teddy bear without even touching it."

"Why would she take a teddy bear to school?"

"Well it was in the dormitory, obviously. Your brothers, what house are they in? I've read a bit about Hogwarts houses, but it all seems a bit confusing…"

"James is in Gryffindor," said Lily. "The house of the morons and perpetually stupid."

"My dad was in Gryffindor," argued Alice. "And so were both of your parents."

"I know," said Lily. "But that was before this likes of _James_ got their hands on it."

"You've been listening to Albus too much," said Alice. "It can't be _that _bad."

"Albus?" asked Alex.

"My other brother. He's a Slytherin."

"You mean they're not together in the same house?"

"No, why should they be? Students at Hogwarts are sorted on account of their personality, although sometimes it runs in families."

"Like the Weasley's," put in Alice. "They've been Gryffindors for centuries. Or the Malfoys, they've been Slytherins for the same amount of time. Or what about the…"

"Yes, _thank you_ Alice," said Lily. "But yes, obviously it does get handed down, but there are a few exceptions."

"Like Albus," said Alice helpfully. "I mean, he's half-Weasley, and he's in Slytherin."

"My cousin Victoire _is _a Weasley," said Lily. "And _she's _in Ravenclaw."

"Yeah but all the others that go to Hogwarts are in Gryffindor. Even Rose…"

"She's not _that_ clever," scoffed Lily. "Albus and Scorpius beat her in the end-of-term tests. She was truly... very…"

"Cheesed off?" suggested Alex. Lily nodded.

"That's one way of putting it. I've never seen a temper tantrum like it, but it serves her right for bragging…"

Their conversation was interrupted by the door sliding open, and a lady asking them:

"Anything off the trolley, dears?"

The girl's faces lit up, and Lily turned to Alex.

"Have you tried wizarding sweets yet?"

He shook his head, and she gasped.

"Alice," she said excitedly. "We've got our first pupil."

XXX

It was dark when the fourth person arrived, a tall boy with red hair, and brown eyes. He looked a bit like Lily.

"Lily!" he said.

"Hi Hugo!"

"There you are, I was looking for you. I heard you escaped from James's clutches."

"That's right."

"Don't blame you, but he's panicking a bit now. He thinks you've gone to sit with Albus, and his 'evil Slytherin friends of doom'…"

Lily rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Victoire's currently scolding him for 'losing you', and told me to tell you that we should be there soon, so I brought you your robes…"

He held up a small rucksack, and Lily beamed at him.

"Thanks Hugo, I owe you one."

"You're welcome, dear cousin. I'd better go now."

"Yes, you can reassure James that I'm not sitting with Albus."

"Yep, I'll tell him you're snogging Scorpius Malfoy. See you later!"

"Hugo don't you dare!" she yelled after him as he ran off down the corridor, laughing.

"Your cousin?" asked Alex, a little confused.

"Hugo," said Lily. "He's a first year too, and bound to be a Gryffindor. My other cousin, Fred, is a prankster, and Hugo eats right out of his hands."

"Congratulations," said Alice dryly. "You've survived your first meeting with a Weasley. Now prepare yourself for the rest of the clan…"

At that moment a voice echoed along the corridor.

"We will be arriving at Hogwarts in five minutes time. Please leave all luggage on the train. It will be taken to the school separately."

All three first years went pale, and looked at each other nervously.

This was it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Hmmga here, and I just realised that I haven't done a disclaimer yet!**

**I do not own the rights to Harry Potter, or any of it's associated universe.**

**This story was a plot-bunny that sprang at me from nowhere. I hope you're enjoying it!**

**Chapter 3**

The hall broke into applause when the hat finished its song, and Alex had to resist wrinkling his nose in disgust.

"We have to try on the hat?" he asked Lily. "Has it _ever_ been washed."

"Probably not," she giggled. "It's a powerful magical artifact, I don't think it would take very well to soap."

Professor Flitwick stepped up, holding a sheet of parchment that was longer than he was. He cleared his throat, and then squeaked the first name.

"Abbot, Henry!"

"Alice's cousin," whispered Lily.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Adams, Katherine!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Baxter, Fiona!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

The sorting went on, with the students being divided into the four houses. Soon they were growing close to the 'M's…

"Longbottom, Alice!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Alice grinned at her father as she sat down, and Flitwick called the next name:

"Millington-Lee, Alexander!"

The entire hall was scrutinising him as he stepped forwards, and he held his head high, effortlessly holding the mask in place. The shield he had began to construct for himself when he was just seven years old.

The hat, to his great surprise, didn't smell as bad as it looked.

"I'll take that as a complement," said a small voice in his year. "Now shut up and let me look at you… hm, a good mind, very intelligent, Ravenclaw could suit you. Hufflepuff… out of the question. Gryffindor… you have courage, that much is obvious. You will face your worst fears with a cool face. But that is also a Slytherin trait. I wonder… there hasn't been a muggleborn Slytherin in over five hundred years. It would be a bold statement to place you there, but if you really belong… what do you say?"

"You're asking_ me_?"

"Of course."

"Put me somewhere I can be great, so I can make my father proud of me."

"In that case, better be… SLYTHERIN!"

The Slytherins applauded politely as he joined them, and a boy wearing a prefect badge clapped him on the back. Alex caught Lily's eye as "Nott, Graham!" was sorted into Gryffindor. She looked slightly dumbstruck.

"Potter, Lily!"

She jumped as her name was called, and walked over to the stall. A moment later…

"SLYTHERIN!"

Her applause was a little more enthusiastic, but there were mutinous mutterings from the Gryffindor table. Lily looked mildly surprised, but she smiled as she dropped into a seat opposite Alex, and a black-haired, green-eyed boy quickly changed seats to be next to her, flinging an arm around her shoulders.

"Well well well," he said cheerfully. "Look who's joined me in the snake-pit. It's a little Lily-pad!"

The surrounding Slytherins chuckled. Lily blushed.

"Don't _call_ me that, Al!" she whined, pushing him away. The boy laughed, and Alex remembered Lily mentioning him before. This was her brother.

"I really didn't expect to see you here, though," said Albus seriously. "But look at James' face…"

"I try not to," said Lily, but they both swivelled around to observe a brown-haired boy who was looking at Lily in horror. They laughed and turned back.

"Smith, Adam!"

Alex looked up to watch his 'friend' being sorted.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

He sighed in relief. At least they would not have to share a dormitory for the next seven years. Lily was watching him.

"Do you know that boy?"

"Our families went to Diagon Alley together," he explained.

"Oh, I see. I think I saw him on the train when I was running away from James. He was dribbling all over his chin."

Alex laughed. "Yeah, that sounds like him."

"Weasley, Hugo!"

Lily and Albus watched their cousin as he was being sorted. The sorting hat took a long time to decide with Hugo.

"RAVENCLAW!"

The Ravenclaws cheered their new house-mate, but there was a large group of red-headed Gryffindors who were all looking outraged. Albus and Lily exchanged smiles.

"Good old Hugo," said Albus.

"I would never have guessed _he_ would be in Ravenclaw," admitted Lily. "The last Weasley of our generation, and he's been sorted outside Gryffindor…"

"Shock, horror, disaster…" said Albus dramatically. He caught Alex staring, and nudged Lily. "Who's your friend? I don't think we've been introduced."

The conversation was cut off as the last student (Zenou, Lawrence) was sorted into Gryffindor, and Headmistress McGonagall got to her feet.

"Good evening," she said. "To our first years, welcome, and to everyone else welcome back! There will be notices, but for now, tuck in!"

There was a general sigh of relief as food materialised on the plates. Alex's eyes widened in shock, his last school had never even attempted to put on a feast of this scale.

"How did they do that?"

"House-elves," explained Albus. Alex nodded. He had read about them.

"Alright, Potter," said an older boy, who had a green prefects badge pinned on his robes. "I'll take it from here. Malfoy's complaining that you've abandoned him."

Albus grinned at his sister, and left to go back to his original place. The prefect positioned himself in the middle of the first-years, looking from one to the other.

"I'm Orion Sharpe," he said. "And I'm your fifth year prefect. I would like to take this opportunity to formally welcome you to Slytherin house. Now, we're going to go around the table, and I would like you to introduce yourselves. Your name, and your blood status."

There was a moments silence, and then Lily spoke up.

"I'm Lily Potter, and I'm a pureblood."

"I'm Rachel Blackwell," said the blond girl to her left. "And I'm a half-blood."

"Joshua Simmons," muttered a boy. "Half-blood."

"I'm Elizabeth Greengrass," said a haughty looking girl with black hair. "I'm a pureblood."

"Nigel Carson, half-blood."

Then it was Alex's turn.

"I'm Alexander Millington-Lee. I'm a muggleborn."

The others, bar Lily, turned to stare at him.

"A muggleborn?" asked Sharpe. "How interesting. We can't have had a muggleborn in Slytherin house in… ooh…"

"Five centuries," said Alex. "According to the sorting hat."

"Fascinating. Well, you were sorted here, so you're one of us now. You're quite lucky really. Before the war you would have been shunned, by the Slytherins for being a muggleborn, and by the rest of the school for being a Slytherin. However, Slytherin is no longer such a pureblood hot-house, even if the rest of the school still sees us that way. Look around you. There's six of you here, but look at the other houses."

Alex saw. All the other houses had at least eight new students, if not more. Looking around, he realised that Slytherin was the smallest house in the hall, and Gryffindor was the biggest by far.

"Because of the war," continued Sharpe, "We now face more prejudice than ever. Slytherin is believed to be the home of cowards, idiots, and dark wizards. So it is our job to prove them wrong. We have to work harder than them, to prove that we're not stupid. We have to be more courteous, and braver to prove that we're not cowards, or dark wizards in the making. But above all, we have to present a united front, to create a shield they can't break through."

"They divide us, they conquer us," realised Alex, and Sharpe nodded appreciatively.

"Later you will see the common room and dormitories. They are positioned down in the dungeons. What happens in the dungeons stays in the dungeons. In the common room you can argue, duel, hold grudges… but when you come up here you must put all conflicts aside. Now, you see that Professor? The one with the white hair."

He pointed to a man sitting at the staff table. He saw them looking, and nodded.

"That is Professor Konechny. He's the transfiguration professor, but he's also our head of house. He'll probably talk to you tomorrow morning. Any problems, and you go to him, myself, or one of the other prefects. He runs compulsory classes for each year group, teaching us etiquette and politics. I think the first year classes are on Friday afternoons…"

The main course vanished from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean. A moment later, the puddings arrived. Eventually, even they disappeared, and McGonagall got to her feet once more.

"Now, just a few start-of-term notices… will the first-years please note that the black forest on the edge of the grounds is forbidden to all students. Quidditch tryouts will be held on the second week of term, and anybody interested in playing for their house team should contact Madame Hooch. "Now, however, it is time for you all to go to bed. Dismissed."

There was a wave of noise as everybody got to their feet at once.

"Follow me," said Sharpe. "I will take you to our common room."


End file.
